Bucket cleaner for excavating machine



Jan. 17, 1956 F. J. FETZNER 2,730,821

BUCKET CLEANER FOR EXCAVATlNG MACHINE Jan. 17, 1956 F, J, FETZNER2,730,821

BUCKET CLEANER FOR EXCAVATlNG MACHINE Filed Dec. l, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet2 INVENTOR. I Q- F/A/vn J/Erzms BY J//Aza/aq Jan. 17, 1956 F. J. FETZNER2,730,82l

BUCKET CLEANER FOR EXCAVATlNG MACHINE Filed Deo. l, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet5 50 .fo INVENTOR.

fw /wr FHM/m I g- 6 BY n #Tram/fw Jan. 17, 1956 F. Jr FETZNER BUCKETCLEANER FOR EXCAVATlNG MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 4l Filed Deo. l 1951 l I l{ll/IJl/llllllIl/Ill[IIL] Il lll/lll INVENTOR. 'A/wf J. 'rzwfe BY m /me,v ma United States Patent O BUCKET CLEANER FOR EXCAVATING MACHINE FrankJ. Fetzner, Willowick, Ohio, assignor to The Cleveland Trencher Company,Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application December 1, 1951,Serial No. 259,406

2 Claims. (Cl. 37-97) This invention relates to improvements in andrelating to a bucket cleaner for excavating machines, and especially toan improved bucket cleaner for insuring the removal of excavatedmaterial from the excavating buckets of a rotary wheel type excavatingor trenching machine. These, therefore, are the general objects of thepresent invention.

A more specic object of the present invention is to provide a bucketcleaner for rotary wheel type trenching machine with resilient meansunder control of a latch mechanism to retain the cleaner in its activeposition but which mechanism will release the cleaner when an undueresistance is encountered, and wherein the latch mechanism will beautomatically reset consequent upon movement of the cleaner to itsactive position.

VThe above objects are accomplished by the provision of a pivotedcleaner arm pivotally mounted on a support to swing from its activeposition to its inactive position under the influence of gravity,together with a compression spring which coacts with a latch mechanismto maintain the cleaner in its active position, such latch mechanismbeing releasable consequent upon the exertion of undue pressure on thecleaner arm, and arranged to be reset by the movement of the arm from anidle to an active position.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparentfrom the following description, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings which illustrate one form of the invention. The essentialfeatures of the invention will be summarized in the claims.

In the drawings, Fig. l is a side elevation of a trench excavatingmachine incorporating the improved bucket cleaner mechanism; Fig. 2 is afragmentary horizontal section through the excavating machine, certainparts being omitted to more clearly illustrate the bucket cleaner andits associated mechanism; Fig. 3 is a fragmentary vertical sectionillustrating the cleaner mechanism, portions of the excavatingmechanism, as for instance the discharge conveyor and its operatingmechanism being omitted to more clearly illustrate the construction ofthe cleaner mechanism; Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 7 are enlarged fragmentarysectional details taken in substantially the same plane as Fig. 3; Fig.8 is a fragmentary plan view of portions of mechanism shown in Figs. 4to 7 inclusive.

`The present invention is especially adaptable for use in connectionwith a rotary wheel trench excavating machine. Such a machine is shownat Fig. l as comprising a frame 10 supported at either side by tractortype belts, one 0f which is shown at 11. The belts 11 are operativelyconnected with a motor 12 mounted on the forward end of the frame. Atthe rear end of the frame there istprovided an inclined upwardlyextending mast 15 upon which a rearwardly extending boom 16 is mountedfor vertical movement. The boom 16 supports an excavating wheel which israised and lowered relative to the mast by cables 17 interconnectedbetween the boom 16 and suitable cable winding drums 18.

The boom 16 includes a pair of horizontally spaced longitudinallyextending frame members 21 secured together by transverse spacingmembers, one of which is shown in Figs. 2 and 3 at 22. A pair of struts23 are secured to each frame member 21 and extend downwardly therefromforming triangular supports for a cross shaft 24 positioned at theirlower ends. A pair of rollers 25 are mounted on the outer ends of theshaft 24 and similar rollers 26 and 27 are mounted on shafts 28 and 29which are carried in supports 3i) mounted on the frame members 21. Therollers 25, 26 and 27 support an ex cavating wheel 20.

The excavating wheel 20 may comprise a pair of horizontally spacedvertically exten-ding annular rings 31 which are joined togetheradjacent their outer peripheries by spaced outwardly extendingbucket-like formations 32. The inner peripheries of the rings 31 aresupportingly engaged by the rollers 25, 26 and 27. The shaft 28supporting the rollers 26 is rotatably mounted in its supports 30 andcarries drive sprockets, one of which is shown at 33. These sprocketscoact with a series of teeth-like formations 3d secured to the outersurfaces of the rings 31. Also secured to the shaft 28 is a sprocketwheel 35 which is drivingly connected by a drive chain 36 with asprocket wheel 37, the latter being drivingly connected with the motorl2 by the usual change-speed transmission unit not shown, but which maybe controlled by a lever 3S.

As indicated in the drawings, particularly in Figs. 2 and 3, each bucket32 may be provided with a plurality of bars 39 which extend rearwardlyand inwardly relative to the direction of rotation of the excavatingWheel and form a back for the bucket. These bars are shown as mounteddirectly on the bucket, however, they may be carried by separatebrackets and secured to the wheel independently of the associatedbuckets.

The application of power to the excavating wheel and to the tractorbelts is selectively controlled in the usual manner to cause the machineto travel in the direction of the arrow shown in Fig, l and to cause thewheel to rotate in a clockwise direction. A belt conveyor 40 is mountedon the boom frame members 21 and extends transversely through theexcavating wheel. Such conveyor mechanisms are well known at the presenttime. Suce it to say that, as the digging wheel rotates in a clockwisedirection, the excavated material is progressed by the buckets until itreaches the upper part of the wheel where it may drop from the buckets32 under the influence of gravity and fall onto conveyor 40 whichdischarges it to one side ofthe machine.

When the machine is used to excavate certain types of earth, such as wetsoil, clay and the like, the buckets frequently will not dischargefully, and at times do not discharge at all. Accordingly, a cleaningmechanism to complete the discharge of the buckets is desirable. Thepresent invention provides an improved cleaner mechanism in which thecleaner is resiliently maintained in active position, together with atrip mechanism which will release the cleaner for movement to an idleposition should the cleaner meet with undue resistance, and wherein thetrip mechanism will be automatically reset consequent upon the movementof the cleaner from an idle to an active position.

The bucket cleaner 50, with which the present invention is particularlyconcerned, comprises an elongated arm pivotally mounted as at 51 on theboom 16 at a point beneath the conveyor di). The cleaner SEB extendsrearwardly along the boom, below the conveyor, and then upwardly andforwardly, above the conveyor and between the rings 31 which form thewheel, into the buckets 352. The uppermost portion 52 of the cleaner maycomprise a single member which, as shown in the drawings, projects intothe buckets 32 between a pair of the bars 39 which form www the rear'wall of the buckets. It will be apparent that a plurality of suchmembers 52 may be removably attached to the arm so as to extend betweeneach pair of bars 39, or the member 52l may be comb-shaped tovpermitrthe passage of the'bars 39 as the wheel rotates. The cleaner 50is arranged to pivot about its axis 51 from the full line or activeposition, shown in Fig. 3, to the dotted line position therein shownwherein the cleaner is withdrawn entirely inside the wheel structure. Inthe presentarrangement the cleaner moves about its pivot from its activeto its inactive position under the influence of gravity.

The cleaner 50 is normally held in its active position,

namely, the full line position of Fig. 3 by one or more compressionsprings 55, which act on the cleaner 50 through a latch mechanismhereinafter to be more fully described. These springs 55 are mounted inelongated rectangular housings 57 which may be secured to the boom 16 asa unit (Fig. 2) or individually secured to the boom (Figs. 6 to 8inclusive). In either instance each spring housing 57 extendslongitudinally relative to the boom'frame and is mounted in a bracketformation 58 which is clamped securely to the boom members 21 by bolts59.

' Each spring 55 comprises a coil type compression spring whichencircles a rod 60, the ends of the spring being interposed between apair of pins 61 carried by its respective housing 57 and an enlargedhead 62 formed on its rod 60. A rectangular block 63 is threadinglymounted on each rod kand serves to limit the outward and rotativemovements of each spring relative to its casing 57.

Each spring 55 is connected with a latch mechanism which normallyretains the cleaner shoe in its uppermost position, shown at Figs. 3 and4. This latch mechanism comprising a rod or bar 65 supported by a pairof arms 66, which are pivotally connected as at 67 to the cleaner 50.The rod 65 is normally drawn toward the pivot 51 of the cleaner by aspring 68 interposed between the rodand a lug 69 carried by the cleanershoe, such movement being limited by a cross bar or stop 70 secured tothe cleaner 50.

The latch bar 65 cooperates with one or more coacting latch members 75.The members comprise levers, each of which is pivoted as at 76 to abracket formation 77 which is secured to the associated spring housing57. Each lever 75 is provided with an extension 78 which is pivotallyconnected as at 79 with its associated spring rod 60heretoforedescribed. When the cleaner is in its normal or active position, asshown in Figs. 3 and 4,

the outer end of each of the latch arms 75 lies beneath f the latch bar65 and the blocks 63 are separated from the stoppins 61 so that the fullforce of the springs 55 acts ,to urge the respective latch members 75 ina vcounter-clockwise direction, thereby resiliently retaining willincrease the pressure of the spring 55, as illustrated in Fig. 5. Shouldthe obstruction remain in the excavating bucket, despite the increasedspring pressure, the movement of the cleaner beyond that indicated inFig. 5 will cause the latch rod 65 to disengage the latch member 75whereupon the cleaner 50 will drop by gravity to the position indicatedby dotted lines in Figs. l and 3, and in Vfull lines in Fig. 6. Thelower position of the cleaner is limited by a transverse bar 19 carriedby the boom frame members 23.

Following the removal of the obstruction by the oper, ator, the rotativepower of the wheel may be used to reset the cleaner 50. As indicated inFig. 3, one end of a suitable cablev or chain 80 is removably secured,as

by a suitable hook, to a downwardly extending lug 81 of the cleaner 50and the cable then passed Varound the shaft 29, heretofore described,and its opposite end removably secured to one of the bucket formations32 of the wheel, as for instance by a hook 82. When-the cable t) is inposition and the wheel is rotated in a clockwise direction (Fig. 3) thecleaner 50 will swing in a counterclockwise direction about its pivot 51from'thedotted linerv position, shown in Fig. 3, to the full lineposition therein shown.

As the cleaner 'arm 50 moves from its released `or lower position to itsuppermost or active position *the latch rod 65 is cammed to the right(Figs. 3 to 6) byv cam surface S5 formed on the underside of the latchbars 75 thereby rocking the bar or rod 65 about its pivot 67 andpermitting such bar to clear the latch members 75. When the cleaner 5l)reaches its uppermost position, the latch bars 65 will be drawn atop theends of the latch arms by their springs 68. The springs 55 now coactthroughv One of the advantages of the presentv constructiony isY n thatit permits the use of the rotative movement of the excavating wheel forresetting the cleaner and the latch.

mechanism. Further, it enables the usey of comparatively heavy springswhich, in their normal positions shown, in, Fig. 6, may bevprecompressed whereby the cleaner ,will be retained in its activeposition by substantially thefull force of the springs. The arrangementlikewise, facilitates the use of a comparatively short spring whichmoves but av short ydistance in relation to themovement of the cleaneritself. Further, the arrangement insures the main taining of both apredetermined relation between the parts of the latch mechanism and apredetermined spring pressure on the cleaner, despite repeated trippingand Vreset,- ting of the latch mechanism.

I claim:

l. In an excavating machine having a rsupport and a plurality ofexcavating buckets movable at a predetermined path relative to saidsupport, a bucket cleari'erYV Vmounted on said support and including apivoted arm adapted to extend into the buckets as they move infsaidpath, said arm being movable under the influence of gravity to an idleposition out ofthe buckets,y arlatchl member pivotally mounted on saidarm, a ,stop forrsaid member secured to said arm, resilient meansintercomy nected between said arm and said latch member to rettili.1 V

said member against said stop, ya second latch member pivotally mountedon said support, a compression-spring mounted on said support andconnected to said second latch member to maintain said latch members inengagement with each other and through the latch members to resilientlyretain the cleaner in its active position in the path of said bucket,said latches being positioned. relative to each other to disengageconsequent upon .the rocking of the cleaner a predetermined distanceagainst.v

the action of said spring and thereby permitthe cleaner to fall to anidle position under the inuence of gravity and coacting cam surfaces onsaid latch members tov move said first-named latch member away from itsstop and permit restoration of the latching engagementof said members bysaid resilient means consequent upon movement of the arm to its activeposition. y

`2. A bucket cleaner for a trench excavating machlnc having a framecarryingA an excavating wheel provided with excavating buckets mountedon its periphery, said cleaner including an arm pivotally mounted on theframe.

to swing from an activeposition extending into the path of the bucketsto an idle position out of the path ofthe buckets, a latch memberpivotally mounted on said arm, a secondlatch member pivotally mounted onsaid frame and engaging with the rst-namedl latch member whenv the armlis in an active position, resilient means interposed between the armand the first named latchmem-.v-

engagement with each other, a compression spring interposed between saidframe and said second named latch member to retain the arm in its activeposition while the latch members are in engagement, said latch membersbeing positioned to disengage each other when the cleaner arm is movedabout its pivot a predetermined distance against the action of saidspring and thereby permit the cleaner to move to an idle position ont ofthe path of the bucket, means carried by said arm to cooperate with thesecond-named latch member to restore said latch member consequent uponmovement of the arm [rom its idle to active position, and wherein one ofsaid latch members has a cam surface to coact with the other latchmember and permit said resilient means to restore the lirst'named latchmember to its active position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

